Chapter 121: A Feverish Gromda
In life, there were a lot of things that were... normal. People fell sick. People went to the hospital to get treated. Yes, even the awakened got sick. People married, divorced, and married again.
There were a lot of normal and common things in the world, even death. But a feverish orc wasn’t one. How did orcs even have a fever in the first place? Well, the answer was right in front of Silas and the rest: Gromda.
Just the day before, she had caused a lot of changes at the estate, making them work on renovating the gym. Now, she was lying on the bed, shivering and burning up. And this burning up wasn’t the normal kind.
It was so severe that Anna’s healing ability wasn’t working. They could literally see vapor and the heat waves radiating off her body. This had crossed the level of the unbelievable. So Silas turned to the best doctor, researcher, most knowledgeable...
[Just get to the point.] The system spoke in a gruff tone, already knowing what Silas was going to ask.
’What’s happening to her?’ Silas asked.
[I will have to run a diagnosis. Touch her.]
’Are you for real? In front of everyone? Alpha is e...’
[YOU FUCKING IDIOT! TOUCH HER FREAKING FOREHEAD!]
’My bad...’
Silas immediately knelt beside the enormous bed.
Gromda’s usually healthy green skin had taken on a faint reddish tint from the unbearable heat radiating off her body. Every breath she took released visible white vapor into the air. The expensive mattress beneath her had already begun to scorch around the edges.
Anna frowned deeply.
"This isn’t a fever..."
She placed both hands over Gromda’s forehead again. Warm golden light flowed from her palms, washing over the giantess in wave after wave of healing mana, but nothing happened. Not even the slightest improvement.
"Impossible."
Anna had healed shattered bones, ruptured organs, poison, curses, even mana backlash, but this... It was as if her healing had nothing to heal.
Chloe stood nearby, clutching the edge of the blanket.
"She’s getting hotter..."
Even Alpha, who rarely showed concern for anything other than himself and his little allowance, looked genuinely worried.
Silas reached forward and gently placed his palm against Gromda’s forehead as instructed by the system. The instant he did, a translucent window appeared before him.
[Scanning Target...]
[Name: Gromda]
[Race: Orc]
[Relationship: Marked Partner]
[Status: Connected]
[Compatibility: 100%]
[Running Complete Biological Analysis...]
Golden lines flowed across the screen while countless symbols flashed past. Gromda whimpered softly.
"Hot..."
Silas gently brushed a strand of her hair aside.
"I’m here."
The system remained unusually quiet. Even the progress bar moved slower than normal. Twenty percent. Thirty-eight. Sixty-four. Seventy-nine...
Finally, it stopped.
[Preliminary Recommendation.]
[Immediately reduce external body temperature.]
[Obtain a towel.]
[Soak thoroughly in cold water.]
[Cover the forehead, neck, chest, and arms.]
[Do NOT use mana.]
Silas immediately looked at Anna.
"Wet towels."
Anna didn’t hesitate and disappeared into the bathroom. Less than a minute later, she returned carrying several towels drenched in cold water. Together, the four of them carefully laid the towels across Gromda’s body, based on Silas’s instructions from the system.
The moment the first towel touched her skin...
SSSSSSSSS
Steam exploded upward, causing everyone to instinctively step back.
"It evaporated..." Anna murmured.
"I’ve never seen anything like this."
Without wasting another second, Anna soaked them again, and another round began, turning into more rounds. Eventually, the towels began lasting longer than three seconds, and the room slowly became cooler.
Gromda’s breathing steadied while her trembling lessened. Silas exhaled quietly.
"Better."
The system spoke again.
[Good. Now relax. I am finalizing the diagnosis.]
Silas frowned.
’That sounded serious.’
[It is.]
Silence settled over the room. Minutes passed, and nobody spoke. Anna quietly changed the towels whenever they became warm. Chloe gently stroked Gromda’s hand.
Alpha stood against the wall with folded arms, unusually silent. He understood this wasn’t the time for jokes. Finally, the system was done.
A much larger holographic report appeared before Silas alone.
[Complete Diagnosis!]
[Subject: Gromda Ashard]
[Race: Orc]
[Current Condition: Partially Stable]
[Illness: None]
Silas narrowed his eyes in confusion.
’None?’
[Correct.]
’Then why is she burning alive?!’
[She is not... She is evolving.]
"What?!" Silas exclaimed, causing everyone to look at him in confusion, but they soon realized he was doing something with his so-called system. Even Alpha had become aware.
The system continued calmly.
[Evolution Requirements Fulfilled]
[Subject has unknowingly fulfilled every prerequisite necessary to ascend beyond the ordinary Orc lineage.]
[Current body is rejecting its former biological limitations.]
[A complete racial metamorphosis has begun.]
Silas stared.
"Evolution?"
[Correct. Congratulations. Your partner has reached the threshold of a superior race.]
Anna looked toward him, her curiosity and worry getting the better of her.
"What is it?"
Silas hesitated before answering.
"She’s... not sick."
"What?"
"She’s evolving."
The room fell silent.
"Evolving?" Chloe repeated.
Silas slowly nodded.
Anna frowned and asked, "Like monsters?"
"Apparently. She is a monster after all."
The system corrected him.
[Not merely monsters. Races. Many intelligent races evolve after fulfilling specific conditions. Humans included.]
Silas raised an eyebrow.
’Seriously?’
[Of course. Humans require absurdly difficult conditions. Most never discover them. Chloe is an evolved human, for example. Anna is on the path. You and Alpha aren’t exactly humans, so it doesn’t count.]
Silas looked back at Gromda. She looked peaceful now, almost sleeping.
’So... she’ll just wake up stronger?’
[No.]
Silas immediately noticed the pause. ’What?’
[Her evolution cannot happen here.]
’Why?’
The next notification appeared.
[Warning]
[Estimated destructive energy released during racial evolution exceeds acceptable limits for Earth.]
[Current location unsuitable.]
[Probability of severe environmental damage: 99.93%]
Silas slowly lowered the screen. "You’ve got to be kidding me."
Anna looked worried.
"What now?"
Silas rubbed his forehead.
"Apparently, if she evolves here, she’ll destroy the estate, and possibly the city..."
Alpha slowly looked around. "...That sounds expensive."
Silas ignored him while the system continued.
[Recommended Evolution Site Located.]
[World Catalogue Entry Found.]
[World Name: Gorgath]
[Classification: Lesser World, Home World of the Orcs]
[Secondary Races: Goblins, Ogres, Trolls, Beast Tribes]
[Status: Accessible]
[Difficulty: Variable]
[Mana Density: High]
[Threat Level: 3 Stars]
[Current Compatibility: 97%]
[Exploration: 0%]
Silas’s eyes widened slightly.
"Gorgath..."
The World Catalogue. He had almost forgotten it existed.
"So every race has its own world?"
[Many do. Gorgath is the ancestral birthplace of Orc-kind. Every superior Orc lineage originates there.]
Another screen appeared, showing several evolution requirements and conditions.
[Evolution Conditions:]
- Bond with a compatible partner
- Enough accumulated combat experience
- Sufficient mana reserves
- Biological maturity
- Emotional stability
[Final Requirement: Return to Gorgath.]
Silas slowly looked toward the sleeping giantess.
"So, she has to go home."
[Correct. Only Gorgath possesses enough World Mana to support her ascension. Attempting evolution elsewhere risks catastrophic failure. She could even die.]
Silas remained silent for several moments, his gaze softening.
"Home..."
Gromda had never once asked to return. She had never complained or mentioned missing her world. She had chosen to stay beside him. But now, her own blood was calling her back.
Anna gently squeezed Silas’s shoulder.
"What are you thinking?"
He smiled faintly.
"I’m thinking, it’s time for us to take another trip."
Chloe’s eyes brightened.
"To where?"
"Gromda’s world. I gained a new skill that lets me travel to various worlds recorded in my system. The World Catalogue."
Alpha sighed.
"I knew peace wouldn’t last, but really, this system of yours is something. If the government discovers..."
"They won’t, and no one would be stupid enough to do it."
The system sounded unusually pleased.
[New Quest Update!]
- Escort Gromda to Gorgath.
- Witness her racial evolution.
- Reward: ???
Silas looked at the sleeping orc one last time before gently brushing her hair back.
"Looks like we’re going to meet your family once again."